Abstract
Seronegative (SN) patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) have clinical and electrophysiologic features similar to those of seropositive (SP) patients, and they respond to the same therapeutic measures. However, because SN patients lack detectable (by standard radioimmunoassays) serum antibodies to acetylcholine receptor (AChR), which are considered to have a crucial role in MG, the pathophysiologic basis for the disease is not clear. We therefore compared the ability of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) of SN patients (11) and SP patients (39) to respond to myasthenogenic T cell epitopes of human AChR. We tested two aspects that relate to T-cell immunity: 1) T cell responses to myasthenogenic peptides by proliferation and IL-2 production, and 2) the ability of antigen-presenting cells to bind these T-cell epitopes. T cells of SN patients did not differ from those of SP patients in their ability to respond and to bind the two human AChR-derived myasthenogenic peptides. This supports the belief that most SN patients indeed suffer from an autoimmune disease directed against the AChR. The presence of T-cell immunity in the absence of antibodies may emphasize the importance of AChR-specific T cells in MG.
Citations
Apr 13, 2000·Annals of Neurology·F BlaesA Vincent
Jan 26, 2000·Comptes rendus de l'Académie des sciences. Série III, Sciences de la vie·M Sela
Jul 10, 2003·Lancet Neurology·Angela VincentJohn McConville
Jul 15, 2005·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Badiga Venkata ArunaEdna Mozes
Feb 19, 2000·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·M Paas-RoznerE Mozes
Aug 17, 2004·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Michael Sela, Edna Mozes
Oct 12, 2011·Autoimmunity·Minako OshimaM Zouhair Atassi
Jul 27, 2006·Acta Neurologica Scandinavica·C TothK Brownell
Jul 11, 2006·Immunology·Badiga Venkata ArunaEdna Mozes
Dec 29, 2004·Human Immunology·Minako OshimaM Zouhair Atassi
Jan 18, 2005·Journal of Neuroimmunology·Samia RaghebRobert P Lisak
Jun 8, 2006·Journal of Neuroimmunology·Badiga Venkata ArunaEdna Mozes
Nov 9, 2017·Frontiers in Immunology·Sapna SharmaNils Yngve Lycke
Jan 31, 2016·The Journal of Immunology : Official Journal of the American Association of Immunologists·Yonghao CaoKevin C O'Connor